Textual Analysis

Axiomatically, Kendrick Lamar's extended music video 'Alright,' is a clear representation of black lives and comments on social and political themes throughout the video stylistically through the editing and cinematography involved within. The alternative hip-hop genre focuses on originality and creativity, therefore everything within this video is purposefully crafted for a reason and to heighten Lamar's views as a respected hip-hop artist. Audiences may feel as though music videos are simple a path for diversion and entertainment, in terms of Blumler and Katz's 'Uses and Gratifications' theory, however personal relationships and personal identity, for some, are able to be produced from this video due to the social commentary within. Initially, we see that the whole video is monochrome; the effect of the monochromatic video would emphasise the creativity of the genre and showcase it to be more than just 'another hip-hop video,' subverting the typical stereotypes of the colour scheme within conventional hip-hop videos. Furthermore, this stylistic device could be used to symbolise the theme of police brutality and racial discrimination through the literal and metaphorical meaning of black and white imagery - focusing on the conflict between the two races. This could therefore emphasise Lamar's expression and reveal the matter even before the song begins. In addition, this monochromatic tone reflects an almost apocalyptic demeanour due to the dark, almost sombre appearing clouds and sky. It's interesting that there are low angle shots of the sky, which connotes the atmosphere; this particular image reveals the light area where we see the sun coming through behind the clouds, which may connote how there is hope surrounded by the darkness and the corruption. This apocalyptic sky is complemented with the soundtrack of Lamar's 'U,' which precedent 'Alright' on his album 'To Pimp A Butterfly.' The screams from "U" relate to the depressive state the Lamar was in and how he was considering suicide and the fact that this is the soundtrack to accompany this rather dreary and ominous looking sky, forebodes the serious social commentary to be involved within this video and the song and therefore reinforce the idea of this apocalyptic essence.This apocalyptic state may therefore relate to the idea that the apocalypse is near if a change is not made; there is light in dark situations however a change must be made in order to find this light and essentially make the change within society. This is reinforced by low angle shot of the church juxtaposed with his lyrics, 'Lucifer was all around me;' this low angle shot reveals the height of the church, the importance of religion to Lamar and the forgiveness that needs to be received as the devil is everywhere. In this case perhaps the 'evils of Lucy,' which is a line repeated several times through TPAB, are the police force and the fact that the devil is not seen and the evils of him are everywhere could perhaps relate to the idea of the law and the corrupt law within this postmodern society. There is also a glow around the cross, which highlights the importance of the church but also due to the fact that he explicitly refers to Lucifer reveals this binary opposition of the good and the evil. Levi-Strauss identified the idea of binary oppositions and the conflicts within society, clearly through the stylistic element of the colour scheme alongside the lyrics juxtaposed with the cinematography it reveals the paradox within society and therefore reveals the dichotomy in terms of racial discrimination.

A nostalgic tone is presented as Kendrick Lamar essentially looks back on the past and rappers, whilst simultaneously adopting an almost angry tone, representing the law enforcement and black people. Following the title of the song, all that is heard is initial silence, which over-emphasises the pause and the silence, making the audience stop and simply marvel at the mise-en-scene within the clip. Four black males are within the car that Lamar is driving, all of which belong to the independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment. The shot pans from the passenger seat round to the front of the car to Lamar, whilst doing so we see the TDE logo as a sticker on the front window; beneath this we there is a STD's F*** YOU! sticker. This may perhaps be in relation to Eazy E and how he died of aids - this subtle iconography may be embodying the nostalgia that Lamar and Co are going through as they may be 'taking a trip down memory lane' here. To further reinforce this idea, Lamar says, 'R..I.P Pac Doe,' this post-production sound is almost like a backing echo, which may suggest how Lamar believes that he is the offspring of Tupac and he aspires to be like him - this is further emphasised when Lamar discusses Tupac on the Kendrick Vs Pac Youtube Channel, where he almost mirrors Tupac's 1988 interview when he was 17 years old. It almost becomes a memorial and a commendation of the rap legends as he recites 'on my dead homies,' he mirrors Tupac through his line, 'ghetto lullaby for every one day mc' - idea of putting every one that thinks they're a good MC in their place but the 'ghetto lullaby' could mirror Tupac's 'Ghetto Gospel' and could emphasise the mirroring of both 'Alright' and 'Ghetto Gospel' through the idea that both are an outcry to end the war on the streets, the racial discrimination and dichotomy in society. Perhaps this highlights how he is embodying the 'King Kendrick' persona and identifying himself as the greatest of all time - it may highlight how people worship the ground he walks on therefore shouldn't even touch the ground but levitate above it as a higher power. What makes this even more interesting are the connotations of police officers as societal princes and in terms of status are of a higher authority, therefore the fact that they are carrying Lamar's car may heighten the extent of Lamar's reign of authority. This links to Gramsci's idea of hegemony as the law enforcement are positioned at a high status yet subvert the stereotype through the corruption of their leadership and dominance. Alternatively, this could represent the theme of police brutality and the historical context of slavery also. There is a contrast between the white officers and the black males, which reveals the paradox within the history of slavery, this would be seen as highly controversial due to the law enforcement being the one's carrying the car. This also relates to Frantz Fanon's idea of 'Black Skin, White Masks' and how Lamar may in fact be trying to appropriate and imitate the culture of the coloniser through this flip of roles. This scene could also suggest that the car is a symbol of a coffin as there are 4 males carrying the car like a coffin and perhaps Kendrick is implicitly suggesting the effects of police brutality and how the law enforcement, who are supposed to be societal princes are the ones leading these men to their deaths. This is then reinforced by the gentlemen in the back, holding the car, being the same one who shoots Lamar at the end of the video, suggesting that this image foreshadows police brutality and the oxymoron in society and perhaps even the deception. To further reinforce this, Lamar raps using the semantic field of adjectives about death, "R.I.P" and "write another eulogy, perhaps Lamar is simply trying to compete with other rap artists here or maybe this semantic field of adjectives relating to death is in relation to the police officers holding the car as these are the people essentially leading black men to their deaths through police brutality. Alternatively, Lamar may simply be focusing on the nostalgia of the situation and praising the acclaimed rap artists due to the idea of a 'eulogy' connoting thoughts of praise and commendation, rather than devaluing them. His tone within the song, when he raps this is angry, which conjures up the idea that he is fed up of the higher powers and does not value the law enforcement within society.

Throughout the music video, iconography is used as a technique to socially and politically comment on racial issues, this is evident as the song comes to a close. Lamar is seen dancing on an enormous lamp post, suggesting his status within society and how he is above everyone else perhaps. He may be connoting the idea that he is this higher power overlooking society and attempting to reform and make a change. The iconography of the lamp-post may relate to how lamp-posts provide artificial light in the dark; Lamar is essentially reflecting this through him providing an artificial argument that attempts to socially and politically comment on racial issues, therefore offering the light within the dark society. His light is artificial due to the fact that he is using his music to voice and express his opinions as a rapper. The police officer that we see holding Lamar's car at the beginning is seen again at the end of the video coming out of his car and attempting to shoot Lamar down from his 'pedestal.' This foreshadowing reinforces the previous idea of police brutality. The officer initially exits the car with a rifle but the shot then cuts to Lamar and then back again to the officer, this time he mimes a gun and mimes the sound of the gun in a childlike way - 'pow.' I think this is the most interesting part of the whole video as the iconography of the gun emphasises the violence and the explicit brutality of the situation, which Lamar diffuses through the gun being replaced with mime. This could suggest the theme of deception as officers are cloaked in a uniform and a badge, socially we are meant to accept police officers as higher powers, who serve to protect a society, however these cases of police brutality subvert this stereotype and emphasise racial discrimination. When the officer 'shoots' blood is seen from Lamar as if wounded, perhaps this iconography relates to how Lamar is wounded within society by these issues and although he is not physically being shot the effects are the same as they cause they raise the same concerns. Lamar falls from his 'pedestal' however when he hits the ground he subtly smiles, reflecting how he can never be shot down by alternative ideologies and he will portray controversial views as he is a rapper who cannot be phased by the law. Whilst falling, the poem that was recited in the beginning is again recited. The image of the falling closely relates to Lamar's 'Swimming Pools' music video as he is constantly falling into this pool of peer pressure. The idea of an endless loop of falling into something that you can't get out of is worrying and here, Lamar is falling into a society which cannot be changed in a day. This could reveal how society is an endless loop of routine and does not want to change or reform. Throughout this video, Lamar makes subtle references to his own previous songs and music videos as well as providing a nostalgic tone to praise acclaimed artists such as Tupac and Eazy E. At the beginning of the video, his 2012 single 'Cartoon and Cereal' is played over the rioting of black youths, portraying very defiant behaviour. Lamar recites, 'making myself realise what my foundation was,' before the introduction of the hook of 'Cartoon and Cereal' emerges; here this may relate to the idea that this song was the foundation for his first major studio-debut album 'good kid, m.A.A.d city,' however this failed to appear on his debut. The theme of this song relates to Karl Marx's idea of the 'Opiates of the Masses,' as the idea of sugar and cheap entertainment is something that consumes our society and an audience let's them enslave their mind. This 'opium,' and this idea of being a slave to the media relates to societal issues as Lamar is attempting to reveal the issues within society through his video, 'Alright.' It almost bases it's idea around moral panics and Stanley Cohen's idea as the media is effectively providing audiences with the view that all black people are defiant, however the power of the mass media has created this problematic state. The iconography and intercontextual links therefore are used to convey societal problems and this symbolism therefore reveals Lamar as a hip-hop artist who is able to socially and politically comment through the use of both iconography and symbolism.